Watch: Knight Shades’ Rebellious Debut on ‘No’

New Delhi rockers Knight Shades recently released a new rebellious video for "No"

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Behind every band making good (and bad) music in the country, there’s a parent expressing some form of reluctance or just straight up resistance to their son or daughter becoming a musician. This is precisely what New Delhi rock outfit Knight Shades pick at on their debut single and music video, “No.”

The clip opens with vocalist-guitarist Vipluv Avasthi, guitarist Tikesh Yadav, bassist Shubham Khanduri and drummer Sagar Hirani skipping school and instead playing a gig at a bar. The band ends up getting caught by Avasthi’s father in the video, played by actor Ashwani Mohan who along with the mother, actress Sohaila Kapoor gives the group a mouthful for not putting more work towards their academics. “We’ve connected that with our own story and our own struggle, and have tried to show all of that in the video,” says Hirani. He adds, “The ‘say no’ part refers to how we need to say no to the people who want us to do what they think is right. It’s about saying no to things that you don’t want to do, and doing what you think is right for you.”

Directed by New Delhi videographer Gaurav Dhingra, the film continues with the parents giving into their kids’ pursuit of happiness and joining the band at a packed club gig that’s filled with balloons flying around and the musicians dressed to the nines. Hirani jokes, “The time we had in the song to portray the whole story was very little, and the shooting that went into it was so much, that Gaurav almost had to get his shoulder replaced by the end of it.”

“No” presents itself as equal parts fun-filled and angst-fueled rock ‘n’ roll, with references to Led Zeppelin, NH7 Weekender, B.B. King, the 27 club (a list of popular musicians, artists and actors that have died at the ‘cursed’ age of 27) and also includes a roaring solo by Yadav. Knight Shades channel their inner Beatles with the song’s bridge section, reminiscent to “Twist and Shout.”

When asked about their own method of navigating the world of pressures to live by the rulebook, Hirani says, “Our loved ones want the good for us, but everybody has their own individuality and we can’t suppress that. So, we don’t condone saying no to studying. Complete your school, get a degree, but you can still continue doing whatever your passion is and be who you want to be at the same time.”

With their first music video out of the way, Knight Shades plan to release about four more in the next two years. On the live front, a four-city tour is also in the works. “Let’s see how much attention the video garners and where it takes us,” says Hirani.